Clément Janequin

Clément Janequin was a French priest and composer of the Renaissance, born around 1485, who spent most of his career in provincial church posts in places like Bordeaux and Angers before moving to Paris late in life. Despite his fame, he never landed a secure position with steady pay, and he died poor in 1558.

What made him famous were his chansons, secular French songs for a small group of unaccompanied voices, and especially his sound-picture pieces. In these, the singers imitate the world: whole aviaries of birdsong in one famous chanson, and the trumpets, drums, and shouting of a battle in another, written to commemorate a French victory. Printers sold these songs all over Europe, and they were hits in the plainest sense.

Start with any good collection of his chansons; the bird pieces and the battle pieces are the natural way in, and they still make singers grin.